Clutchless shifting, good or bad?

[Nexus]

I'll be honest, I just heard about this. Is clutch-less shifting good or bad? I've always used the clutch to upshift and downshift. I've been doing some reading on this about matching the revs to downshift. I haven't tried it yet. Is this a good idea? Better on the clutch? What harm can it pose? Thoughts?

 

[LedRobster]

You should use the clutch. Rev-Matching on a downshift means blipping the throttle up in neutral to match the RPMs of the lower gear before shifting to save wear on your synchros and make for a smoother shift, it a good idea but still involves using the clutch.

I believe there are ways to upshift without clutching, but it's not worth the wear on your gearbox/synchos and would only be used in an emergency (some kind of clutch failure where you couldn't pull over).

 

[frankiefiesta]

Do not shift clutchless.. Very dumb idea, stuff will break quick

No need to rev match on downshifts when driving on the streets.

 

[jeffreylyon]

Bad. Don't do this. A synchomeshed gear box is not meant to be shifted without the clutch disengaged. The synchromesh works by spinning the input shaft of the gearbox up or down to match the speed of the output shaft, relative to the gear that you're selecting. It can't do this if the input shaft is connect to the crank of the engine through an engaged clutch - you'll end up wearing your synchros out trying to wiggle into gear. A dog box is meant for clutch-less shifting but, IMHO, they are horrible on the street and need relatively frequent rebuilds. Moreover, it's possible to upshift faster when clutching because you're not waiting for the engine to derev. before you can engage the next gear and get back onto power.

Even the pro's use the clutch with a synchromeshed gearbox.

 

[Nexus]

Thanks guys. I came across this article on a local newspaper online and I thought that the last tip was a bit odd

http://ow.ly/dxuH303WoNl

 

[LedRobster]

Thanks guys. I came across this article on a local newspaper online and I thought that the last tip was a bit odd

http://ow.ly/dxuH303WoNl

Guy sounds like a tool. =)